Cannes: Kino Swiat Gets EuropaCorp Output for Poland

The distributor, the leading independent in the Polish market, also picked up Luc Besson's upcoming sci-fi adaptation 'Valerian.'

Kino Swiat, the leading independent distributor in Poland, has signed an output deal with Luc Besson's EuropaCorp to handle the company's upcoming slate in the territory.

The agreement kicks off with The Transporter Refueled, the first film in EuropaCorp's relaunch of the action franchise, which stars Ed Skrein in the role made famous by Jason Statham. The film is the first in a planned trilogy.

Separately, Kino Swiat picked up Polish rights for Valerian, the upcoming sci-fi actioner with Dane DeHaan playing an agent from a future earth who travels back in time to carry out his missions. It is based on the 1967 novel by Pierre Christin and Jean-Claude Mezieres, which has sold more than 10 million copies worldwide. Production on Valerian is set to begin at the end of this year, with a global release slated for summer 2017. The project comes off the massive success of Besson's action thriller Lucy, which smashed all expectations, earning more than $450 million worldwide.

In addition to the Transporter trilogy and Valerian, EuropaCorp has also announced that it will produce the high-concept comedy Nine Lives, starring Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Garner, Christopher Walken and Robbie Amell, which Men in Black helmer Barry Sonnenfeld will direct.

EuropaCorp's output agreement in Poland follows a similar deal with Canada's VVS Films, which the company struck at the American Film Market last year. EuropaCorp has a comparable output arrangement with Universum Film in Germany.

EuropaCorp is ramping up its production slate of English-language features, fueled by a $600 million line of credit and a joint venture deal with Relativity Media to distribute EuropaCorp title in the U.S. It appears the French mini-major is looking to lock down output deals in multiple international territories to guarantee pre-financing and distribution for its slate, much in the way Lionsgate or Summit have done worldwide.